The Fourth Time Around
by sheepfairy
Summary: She keeps living in the same patterns, but maybe it will turn out better this time. BuffyFaith


**Title:** Fourth Time Around

**Characters:** Buffy/Faith

**Word Count:** 1100

**Spoilers:** Through the end of the series.

**Summary:** Buffy keeps falling into the same patterns, but occasionally things end up better anyway.

1.

Looking back on her life, Buffy decides that it was around the end of high school that her life started to head downwards. Not that it had been all roses and sunshine before then, but she thinks maybe they destroyed more than they meant to when they blew up the old high school library. She realizes that nobody gets to relive the good old days, but the past few years have sucked majorly for Buffy, and so she feels entitled to her bout with depression and self-destruction.

But she has also come to realize that wallowing in self-pity is no way to lead a life. And so, as the bus pulls out from gapping crater that used to be her hometown, Buffy decides to leave her old self with it. From here on out she's going to be a new person – or, if not a new person, than more like the girl she used to be.

She says a prayer for Spike and Anya once things have calmed down, but she doesn't let herself dwell on their deaths, because her life can only get better from here.

2.

She is three months into her new life in Cleveland and she can safely say that her new positive-thinking regimen is working wonders for her personal life, particularly in regards to one Faith Lehane.

Before she might have held a grudge for, well, a whole damn lot of the things that Faith has done to her. But Buffy's trying a new thing now, and so when Faith barges into the common room to ask if anybody wants to go clubbing (probably expecting a rousing chorus of 'no's), Buffy decides to say yeah, sure, why the hell not.

Willow gives her a look like she might be insane, but for the most part Willow is too involved with Kennedy to be really committed to her campaign against Faith, and there's nobody else around willing to talk Buffy out of it. And so she follows Faith out the door and into the night.

3.

She can barely hear the lyrics to the music over the roar of the club, but it doesn't matter much to Buffy. Club music isn't supposed to be about the lyrics anyway, it's about the beat, and the heavy bass thumping is enough for her to work with.

She had come to this place completely expecting to find some men to dance with, but it seems like a waste of her time to go hunting for a partner when she already has Faith right next to her, moving up against her a little closer than someone who is just her friend would.

And it isn't like she hasn't danced with Faith before. Hell, if she's going to be honest with herself, she'd even flirted with Faith before everything had gone to hell in her senior year. Buffy is always falling for the dark and dangerous types, and no matter how reformed Faith claims to be, Buffy isn't fooled into thinking that she's safe for a second.

So even though she's promised herself she isn't going to fall into old patterns, she's had a whole lot of the little fizzy drinks that the bar charges about a million dollars for and those things have a way of making anything seem like a really good idea.

4.

The cab ride home is a little difficult because she keeps having to push Faith's hands away before they end up fucking each other right in front of the creepy guy who's driving them. But in the end all the grappling just makes her wish they could be home even faster.

It's late when they do finally get back to the house, and for a while Buffy's worried that they're going to wake up the whole block before they even make it to her bedroom.

"Faith, we're _almost_ to the bed," says Buffy in a whisper than comes out a little too loud, making her wince. "Can't you be patient for like five seconds?"

"No," says Faith, pushing her against the wall and ripping her shirt off, leaving Buffy standing in just her bra and skirt. The small part of Buffy that is a responsible adult is upset about ruining a perfectly good shirt, but the rest of her just thinks it's hot.

It takes an extraordinary amount of willpower for Buffy to push Faith off of her for long enough to get them to the bedroom, where Faith has the rest of her clothes fast. And for a brief second Buffy has that flash of embarrassment that comes to her whenever she's naked in front of another person for the first time, but Faith doesn't waste much time actually staring at her.

Faith reaches into her back pocket, and as she pulls out a dental dam package Buffy sees two condoms and a small tube of lube slip out onto the bed next to her. Faith is always prepared for anything, Buffy will grant her that.

In seconds Faith's hands are pushing her into the bed, and her thumbs are holding the dam in place and all of a sudden Buffy can feel the slick pressure of Faith's tongue pushing through the latex against her clit.

Her hips jerk up of their own accord, and the only thing she wants is more of that feeling.

5.

"So you decided to sleep with _Faith _for your first time?" asks Willow, and Buffy realizes that maybe she should have just kept this to her self. Except for the part where they did end up waking up most of the house, so it's not like she could have kept it a secret even if she'd wanted to.

"It wasn't my _first_ first time, it was just my first time with a girl. It's not like I gave my virginity up to the first chick I met on the street. And, y'know, it was actually way better than my first time with a guy, because I saw her at breakfast today and she totally wasn't trying to kill everyone I know," says Buffy.

"So, wait, you actually really liked it?" asks Willow a little incredulously.

Buffy nods. "If I can say one good thing about Faith, it's that she knows what she's doing in the bedroom."

"Huh," says Willow. "You know, I'm a little offended. All these years you've been open to girls, but I don't even register?"

"You're my best friend, Willow. It would have been hella awkward. And besides, I'm not sure you're really my type."


End file.
